They were clowning around — literally — but more than 20 hopefuls from as far away as Virginia to the south and Toronto to the north also were drop-dead serious Wednesday about their auditions to get into Clown College.

Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, winding up its run at the Prudential Center in Newark before heading to the Izod Center in the Meadowlands next weekend, took a close look at some folks who crave a career in red rubber noses and grease paint.

“Many of these people are already performers, but they want to join the circus,” said Meg McMahon, a spokeswoman for Ringling.

“Some are birthday-party clowns, some are magicians, we had a nurse, an electrical technician and even the Brown M&M from the M&M store in Manhattan.

“We even had two crew members of the current show, who want to step from behind the scenes into the spotlight,” McMahon said. “They all have one thing in common: They want to make people laugh and be happy.”

Those who auditioned, ranging in age from 16 to their 40s, were hoping for the first of several call-backs from among numerous regional auditions as the circus travels around the country, McMahon said.

She added that of the more than 20 who auditioned Wednesday, perhaps as many as five might make it through an “arduous” audition process to get into Clown College — and possibly qualify for an eventual job with the circus.

“It’s not an easy process,” she said.

Email: norman@northjersey.com

Scarlett Sullivan, a clown from Morristown, peeks out the door before the start of the auditions for the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus clown college at the Prudential Center in Newark.